For K
by seaofwords22
Summary: After the mysterious disappearance of Katherine Pierce nothing stayed the same in Mystic Falls. When her body is found a year later, her four best friends are tormented by an unknown source who engages them in a dangerous cat and mouse game in order to solve the mystey of Katherine's murder. Will they cooperate or will they watch their deepest secrets come to surface? AU/AH


**Greetings everyone! Yeap I'm here with a brand new story! I hope that you'll like it as much as the others! Read and enjoy, sweethearts!**

**Disclamer: I own nothing, just my ideas.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

**Murder On The Dance Floor**

"_My name is… Or No… No, I'm not gonna start that way. I prefer to keep it a secret. Isn't it intriguing? The power of knowing everything that goes on behind every closed door, behind every fake perfect family portrait and every low profile citizen of our small town? Well, you would be surprised by how disgusting can be the real face of even the most innocent ones. You don't see it but I do; it's in eyes. Look closely. You caught this? The spark that goes off, the emptiness in their stare that indicates they are hiding something? Good. Now forget it. Because if go around, glowing with confidence that you figured out their secret you'll end up like me. Maybe I'm exaggerating; maybe I'm not. But just remember; even though I'm telling you this story, doesn't mean that I'm alive at the end…"_

* * *

"An entire year has passed since the day our town was shocked by the news of the mysterious disappearance of 16-year-old Katherine Pierce. The loving girl and student vanished at the night of the annual high school homecoming dance without any trace, making it difficult for the police to find any new evidence about her case. The family as well as the entire town of Mystic Falls is still shaken by the shocking incident but not willing to let go. Let's just hope that in tonight's homecoming dance the painful memories won't be repeated. In other news…"

"Again about Katherine? God, don't they know that the fact that they are repeating it is actually the reason why people can't move on?" the sound of confident footsteps making their way down the stairs and to the kitchen along with that distinguishing imposing tone of voice made Caroline snap out of her haze and sigh while lowering her blue mug from her lips. Clearly she wasn't in any mood of bitch bickering with her older sister.

"And yet I thought you were a lawyer graduate! Since when did you become such an expert in the phycology field?" Caroline spoke in a sarcastic tone.

"Well, it doesn't take a degree to be logical." Lexi threw back with the same amount of sarcasm as she passed her by and fixed herself a cup of coffee. Caroline just gave her a fake murmur of approval accompanied with an eye roll. "So who is your date for the dance tonight?" she went on while she fetched the morning newspaper from the counter and took a seat across her at the silver kitchen island.

The younger blonde frowned. "Of course you wouldn't leave any chance to rub to my face that I'm dateless!" she waved her hands in the air in frustration.

"Oh, retract the claws, drama queen. Unlike what you think, I'm not always in the mood of awaking your inner neurotic self."

"Whatever." She grimaced. "Why are you of all people asking anyway?"

"Nothing, just wanting to know with who I will be seeing you tonight." She replied flipping the page.

"What? This is a high school dance and as I recall high school is way out of your age league." Caroline snapped.

"Hey, easy." Lexi finally raised her eyes from the newspaper, sending her a warning glare. "I'm a former homecoming queen so the school asked me to crown the new one. And since last year's queen was Katherine and she well…"

Caroline immediately rose from her seat, taking her mug to the sink. She knew what happened to Katherine; she didn't want to hear it once again and especially from her sister who never took it seriously. "You know what, do what you want." She replied in a harsher voice than needed. "I don't even care about the stupid dance." She grabbed her brown shoulder bag and her car keys and was about to run off like she usually did when something was driving her mad, before the same imposing voice stopped her.

"Caroline" Lexi called turning towards her "you should learn to let go."

"I should learn to let go?" she laughed sarcastically. "What about, Lexi? Being attached to somebody that doesn't give a damn about you?"

"This is not about me." She defended herself, folding her arms over her chest.

"Well, it is not about me either! I really don't know why you woke up today and felt the need to be a good sister!" Caroline replied in a somewhat accusing tone.

"Look, I know everything is taught for you and I remember that the psychologist said that it's normal for you to have those mood swings and temper tantrums…"

"Oh yeah right!" she cut her off. "The psychologist that mom and dad hired back then in order to make me shiny and new again!" Caroline faked a smile, her tone oozing sarcasm once again.

"You really should be grateful for what mom and dad are doing." Lexi shook her head in disappointment and her sister huffed. "You know what Caroline? It seems that all of us are wasting our time with you." She stated with venom and with a last bitter glance of her chocolate eyes, she returned to her seat and continued reading like nothing happened.

Caroline shook her head too, not believing the words that came out of her sister's lips. She should have been used to it but it seemed that she wasn't so coldblooded as everyone believed she was. Wanting to escape, she quickly hurried outside and only when she was securely inside her silver Ford Fiesta, she let herself breathe again. She closed her tired eyes and rested her head back, her hand absentmindedly fisting the hem of her dark red blazer. During this year, she had managed to leave everything back and suppress all the memories that were haunting her but now, _today_, it seemed that everything was just too much.

Her mind drifted back to that night, the sound of the heavy footsteps still echoing in her head, rhythmically, viciously, cruelly. Heartbeat rising and pulse quickening, her eyes revealed their troubled sea blue color as they snapped open fighting with the demons her mind was creating. That was not a way to deal with it, she thought as she was trying to calm her raging breath; she once again had to put a brave face. She was Caroline Forbes after all. And the Forbes didn't handle imperfection very well. So she let a deep sigh and after running a hand over her white lace collared top and her dark blue boot cut jeans to soothe any possible wrinkles, she drove off ready to face yet another long day.

* * *

A wave of secretive chatting and curious glances rose amongst the students at the school parking lot as long as the fawn chunky peep toe ankle booty clad foot appeared next to the open door of the red Mini Cooper. With an elegant sway of her long blonde wavy hair over her back, Rebekah Sommers sauntered through the busy yard of Mystic Falls High with a confidence matching the most high-end models in the finest Parisian catwalks. The beige and black polka dotted dress flared gently just a little over her knees exposing her toned legs whereas the blue belt was showing off her petite waist and high lightening her rich but not provocative cleavage. A beige leather jacket was hugging her bare arms and an also blue tote bag was hanging loosely from the inside of her elbow, matching the bracelets on her wrists and the long earrings that were playing hide and seek in the mess of silk hair.

Rebekah was the It-girl of the entire town of Mystic Falls. She was every boy's wildest dream and every girl's most fearful nightmare. Focusing only on her looks, people usually thought that Rebekah was just a pretty face with a heart of an ice queen inside. Yeah, her stuck up façade was a very good cover up indeed but that wasn't true. She was kind and funny and sensitive but no one had dug enough to find those layers. Boys usually never stayed for more than a night and girls were her friends only to manipulate her and use her popularity for their sake.

She had to be that way; cold, distant, "a bitch" as she usually heard people whispering as she was passing by in the school corridor. She had to be that way because she wasn't at all the girl she was a year ago. That girl died after that night. Rebekah had made a fresh start, a step forward and nothing could bring her down now.

"Oh my God, you dirty bitch! I knew you were gonna take those shoes right from my hands!" an accented voice scolded her and she turned around, blonde locks dancing around her.

"What can I say? I'm really fast when it comes to shopping." Rebekah shrugged matter-of-factly earning a wide grin from the girl with the hazel green eyes.

"Tell me about it! Anyways, I am going to forgive you since they do look pretty bitching on you." Hayley complimented her, throwing her brunette curls over her shoulder in a diva manner.

"Well, thank you!" Rebekah's bright smile put a matching one on her friend's lips, before she slid her arm on Hayley's elbow and the two girls started walking. "So who are you bringing to the dance tonight?"

"Since he so kindly asked, I think I'm gonna give Dean a chance." Haley half smiled in a naughty manner and Rebekah nudged her shoulder playfully.

"Nice job, girl!" she commended and the brunette laughed. "Plus, he's so undressing you with his eyes already, parenthesis, not to blame him regarding what you're wearing." She teased her with a title of her head to his direction when the girls came to a halt in front of their lockers.

"Shut up!" Hayley laughed, elbowing her before fixing the hem of her peach lace cami that fell loosely on top of her dark blue shorts. A pair of dark brown heeled boots complimented her legs and matched her leather jacket that she decided to throw on top of her outfit. "You're coming with Alexander, right?"

"Uh-huh." The blonde nodded, arranging the folders inside her locker. "Although I'm not really thrilled to spend my last homecoming dance with my ass of an ex." She groaned and her friend rolled her eyes.

"Oh, please! You guys will make up again, I'm sure! He's captain of the baseball team, you're Mystic Falls queen, boom, you're destined to be together." She spoke with certainty and Rebekah just ignored her with a shake of her head. This mapped out life didn't really suit her. "So how is life in the Sommers' house?" Haley went on.

"I'd rather not talk about that." Rebekah immediately replied, her mood obviously changing.

"Bex, come on, give the poor people a chance. Jenna and Alaric are the coolest and the fact that you found out…"

"Hayley, I told you I don't wanna talk about it." She cut her off a little harsher, offering her a warning glance. "And could you keep your voice down? People hearing this is not something I want to think about right now." She looked around securing that the conversation was between them. "The only people that know are me, you and…"

"Yeah, I know, she-who-can't-be-named." Hayley shook her head in exasperation earning another glare from the blonde, an angrier one this time. "Sorry." She murmured. "I'm just tired of all that mourning, I know it sucks, but this town never seems to move on, they are stuck in what happened…" she went on and on but Rebekah wasn't hearing as her focus was claimed by another blonde that hovered at the information board.

"I'll be right back." She took her books and closed her locker absentmindedly, quickly walking to the girl's side.

"Hey." Rebekah spoke quietly watching as she slightly jumped and turned to face the intruder.

"Hi." Caroline offered back with a small smile, fingering the strap of her brown bag against her chest.

"Well, I think people kinda overdid it with tonight's dance." Rebekah let a small laugh and pointed a finger at the more than necessary flyers and posters and even sticky papers that hung on the board, all informing the students about the upcoming event.

Caroline joined her in a small giggle. "It's our last homecoming; they wanna make it unforgettable. Even my sister will be there."

"Isn't Ms. Perfect a little too old for high school?" Rebekah frowned in confusion.

"That's exactly what I said." The two girls laughed lightly.

"Did you watch the news today?" Caroline hesitated but asked, once their laughter died.

Rebekah slowly nodded her smile fading. "Yeah, I did."

"She's gone but she's everywhere." The more up-tie blonde stated with a thinking expression.

"I can't believe it's been a year." Her former friend sighed and shook her head in disbelief.

"Do you remember what Katherine always used to say?" Caroline suddenly asked, raising her eyes to meet Rebekah's blue ones. "About out secrets keeping us close?" she added and saw Rebekah nodding. "I think it goes the opposite." Caroline's statement caused a heavy silence to spread between the two girls, the mood suddenly changing around them. Caroline finally offered her a small, tight smile and Rebekah gulped, closing her eyes for a brief second to gather her thoughts.

"So, I'll see you tonight?" Rebekah squalled happily, totally changing from a moment ago.

"Yeah!" Caroline shrugged in a "duh" manner, a cocky smirk curling her lips. "I'll be the one trying to steal your spotlight."

"Oh, honey, this is as impossible as Prada selling its bags half price." Rebekah gave her a challenging smirk which made Caroline shake her head in amusement. "See you on the playground, Forbes." She smiled genuinely this time.

"See you." Caroline offered her back the same smile before Rebekah walked away and joined Hayley, stealing a last glance of her former friend.

* * *

"Ok, off you go, princess."

"Thanks for driving me, dad." Bonnie smiled sweetly to her father. "I don't know what went wrong with my car this morning."

"Don't worry, I'll have somebody look at it and if it can't be fixed today, you can drive my car tomorrow." Ruby assured her, silencing the ringing phone inside the pocket of his suit jacket.

Bonnie nodded. "Now go. I hate it that I made you late for work."

He laughed. "I think being the mayor of this town gives me the privilege of a more flexible work schedule; especially if my only daughter is in need."

Bonnie laughed too. "Tell this to all the eight-hour day employees of the said town and your reelection will be as possible as me ever learning to cook!" she teased him.

"You think, huh?" he joked as well and matched her wide grin.

"Anyways, I really don't want to be late again. So I'll see you at dinner?" she asked placing a hand at the door handle ready to exit the car.

"I hope so. But I'll definitely be there to question your homecoming date before handing you over." He faked an authorizing father voice.

Bonnie shook her head, tugging a loose black curl behind her ear. "I told you dad, no date this year."

Her dad examined the way her face slightly seemed to sadden for a minute. "Why don't you take Luca?"

"Dad, please, it's already lame enough to show up alone, I really don't need my brother as my date to top off the evening!" she let a breathing laugh.

"I guess you have a point." He chuckled lightly.

"Believe me, I'm fine with it." She assured him with a wave of her hand while hopping off the car. "I'll see you tonight."

"Yeah. Don't be late; you know your grandma worries." He reminded her with a title of his head and she nodded. "Be…safe." Ruby added with more intensity, trying to pass his hidden message along.

Bonnie's eyes shadowed as she understood what he meant and she offered him a sad, tight smile. "I will." was her simple response before they said their goodbyes.

As long as her dad's black Mercedes disappeared, Bonnie adjusted her blue-greenish square bag pack on her shoulders and hesitantly walked to the tall glass doors of Mystic Falls High. Her black high heeled laced ankle booties were clicking gracefully on the plastic white floor of the huge corridor as her black and grey striped layered dress danced around her calves. The outfit was topped off with a charcoal woolen loose cardigan with shawl collar to hide the skin that the racerback with cut-offs of her dress left uncovered and some edgy and totally unique accessories offering a hint of color to the sea of blacks and greys.

Putting aside her outrageous sense of style, Bonnie Bennett was just a cool, low profile girl next door. She was more of a loner but the girl that everyone had something nice to say about. The petite brunette with the chocolate skin was the bookworm, not necessarily the smartest or the best student but the one that read a lot; the hopeless romantic, the sucker for 80's movies, the most curious one about nature and whatever she could offer to the mankind. But this past year she had lost a little of this childlike curiosity. It seemed like she grew up overnight; actually she needed to. After September 24 –that unforgettable night- nothing stayed the same. Not them, not even her. And sometimes she caught herself missing the way things were back then, when everything was simpler, calmer, easier.

Bonnie finally reached her locker and expertly cracked it open. As she was putting her books inside, she caught a glimpse of the two perfect blondes waving a polite goodbye at each other. Back then, Bonnie would have cheerfully skipped over to them, the girls engaging themselves immediately in loud chatting and laughs but now… Now they weren't friends anymore. Even Caroline and Rebekah, the "Barbies" of the group as they used to call them, were just friendly but not friends. They haven't fought about anything, they just drifted apart, all four of them two little to handle the pressure of having to forget. Maybe they were better off without each other; she didn't know and she never would.

Somebody from next to her snapped their locker closed with force, making her jump lightly and rip her eyes from them. It was the day, she told herself, that made her think about all that. Neatly putting her books in a pile and retrieving only the ones she need for first period, she quickly made her way to her class with her head down, her mess of raven black hair hiding her beautiful features.

Just when she was about to get into the classroom another body collided with hers, the action making Bonnie's heavy books fall from her hands.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I really should watch where I go." The girl with the long brunette hair kneeled immediately to the ground, helping Bonnie gather her stuff.

"It's alright, Elena. No big." Bonnie gave her a small smile, taking the notebooks Elena offered her. The two girls stood up and walked to their desks next to each other, only the sound of Bonnie's heels and Elena's combat like ankle booties interrupting the heavy silence between them.

"So tonight's the dance huh?" Bonnie asked the first thing coming to her mind, wanting to break some of the ice with small talk.

"Yeah, I will barely have time to take a quick shower and get ready after practice." Elena trailed off, leaving her book and folder on her desk before placing her brown oversized bag to the floor.

"There's a big game in two weeks, I remember." Bonnie nodded. "How's your wrist? I heard you got injured a couple of days ago…" she eyed her concerned.

"Oh, it's fine." The brunette rubbed the spot on her arm. "Just a bad fall while trying to pass the ball off the net. The perks of being a volleyball player." She joked, earning a laugh from Bonnie. Elena was the athletic one, her tall, well-built figure screaming that from miles usually clad in skinny jeans and athletic tank tops. When she was feeling the need to spice it up, she would add a colorful scarf or, just like today, a denim shirt over her white tank. She was proud captain of the school's volleyball team and their most precious player since no one in years had managed to bring the female team to finals. Thanks to Elena and her coordination skills with the other players, their school was always the one to win all the state championships up to that date.

"I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you for a while now." Elena went on apologetically, both of them feeling the mood changing.

"It's ok. I mean it's barely two weeks since school started and you're gone the whole summer…" Bonnie waved a hand as she trailed off the facts. "Where were you anyway? Some fancy beach vacation?"

"Not that fancy." Elena snorted. "Williamsburg; family bonding with an essence of history." She made a face of disgust.

"I'm sure it wasn't as bad as staying here in Mystic Falls." Bonnie argued and Elena flinched in horror. "At least I occupied myself with literature classes at Virginia University."

"That sounds interesting." The other girl nodded before letting a heavy sigh. "Look how we are talking, like we're some acquaintances and nothing more. We drifted apart, didn't we?"

"We had too, Elena." She replied in all seriousness and her friend hesitantly agreed with a small nod. "Have you noticed that today it's exactly a year since it happened?"

"Uh, how couldn't I? Everyone is referring to it as "the anniversary of Katherine's disappearance"." She put air quotes, sarcasm evident in her voice. "Like it's a party or something."

"Small town likes its drama; it's awful." Bonnie shook her head. "You know, Damon is back." She added after some minutes of silence.

Elena snapped her eyes at her, surprised by the news. "As in Katherine's brother?" her voice reached a higher octave and Bonnie nodded silently. "I thought they moved in Chicago for good, after what happened."

"He came alone. I just saw him this morning, uploading boxes from a truck." Bonnie informed her a little more secretly as students were now starting to fill the room.

"Did he say anything to you?" Elena asked in the same tone, leaning a little closer to her.

"Nah, I just saw him from my window." She shook her head.

"I hope now that somebody from her family is back, we will have some news soon." Elena focused her eyes on her desk, trying to hide her discomfort about the subject.

"Let's hope." Bonnie repeated and before they got the chance to say more, the students started flooding the classroom, amongst them Caroline and Rebekah, who quickly took their seats. The latter threw the two brunettes a forced wave which Bonnie only half returned before Rebekah turned her focus again on a babbling Haley. Mr. Tanner walked in then effectively silencing the energetic teenagers and just like that another usual day started at Mystic Falls High. Or wasn't it?

* * *

Five hours later and after a canceled last period, Rebekah and Haley were supporting their local economy by yet another of their many costly visits to Mystic Falls Mall. Delicate hands filled with an outrageous number of bags from of course the finest and most expensive boutiques that could be found in such a small town, the girls made their last stop to the only decent men's clothing store, much to Rebekah's confusion.

"Ok, why exactly did you bring me here?" she frowned, following Haley down the wide main corridor of the shop. "I mean up until know we didn't need any slacks or hideous dress shirts in shitty colors." The blonde flinched, eyeing some of the choices that were displayed on the top selves. "Unless, you're changing your gender anytime soon and this is your way of telling me." She raised her hands in defense, faking indifference but cracking an amusing grin.

Haley laughed loudly. "Please, honey, I more than perfectly fine with my lady business so I'm not going to change that anytime soon!" she assured her, stopping in front of a self with ties. "Dean just asked me to pick up a tie for him."

"What is he, four? Can't he pick his own tie?" Rebekah shook her head in exasperation.

"Well, Ms. Grumpy, he asked me to in order to pick one that matches my dress." The brunette explained, her hands quickly going through the colorful ties. "Shoot! They are out of red ones!" she groaned.

The other girl huffed. "This better not take us long cause I'm hungry, tired and I'm going to be accepting a crown tonight so I have to start getting ready in less than three hours, in order to look dashing of course."

"Don't worry; I'll make it quick." Haley replied looking around in hopes to spot a salesman. "I'm gonna go ask them if they have any in stock."

"Fine!" Rebekah scoffed. "In the meantime, I'm going to look around and try to guess which hideous suit Alexander chose for tonight." She offered her a fake pleased smile and her friend giggled before walking away.

As long as Hayley was gone, Rebekah started wandering around the many other smaller alleys boringly searching through the dull items of the male attire. She passed by some older guys with awful sense of style and creepy interest for her bare legs as well as Tyler Lockwood and some other guys from the baseball team, laughing, or better barking loudly about some stupid joke regarding the dress shirts they were choosing from. Morons, she thought and huffed loudly.

Rounding the corner however, Rebekah's interest peaked. A tall, well-built man, at around his middle twenties was hovering there, totally lost in the sea of different colors and styles. Rebekah felt the room's temperature rise as she scanned him from bottom to top, taking in his muscular physic and board shoulders, a sign that exercise was a good friend of his. The light grey sweater and low fitting dark blue jeans he chose to wear were pointing out perfectly his gorgeous body whereas his sandy blonde hair and baby blue eyes were putting a touch of innocence on his makes-you-weak-in-the-knees handsome face. A frown was deeply painted on his forehead as his eyes were going back and forth between a blue and a fawn tie, clearly wanting something to match with the light blue dress shirt and brown slacks that were hanging from his elbow.

Checking quickly her hair and make-up on her iPhone's screen, Rebekah made some confident steps forward while plastering a charming smile on her lips.

"Definitely the blue one." Her voice rang to his ears, causing his baby blues to find hers. His frown disappeared and its place took a dumbfounded grin at the beautiful face that greeted him.

"Really, huh? I'm here for like half an hour and I can't figure out which one; it's pathetic!" he laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head with his free hand.

"So in comes your rescue!" Rebekah joked, pointing to herself. "Fawn is just too old school and won't look good on an equal pale material like your shirt." She took the said tie from his arm and threw it to the self with the others. "So it's the blue one. See?" she turned to him and placed the blue tie on top of his shirt to show him how well they match.

"Wow!" he exclaimed, eyeing his now complete outfit. "That was indeed easy for you." He chuckled.

"Well, I think us women have a more advance sense of fashion." She shrugged.

"I have to agree on that." He nodded. "Thank you…" he narrowed his eyes, wondering about her name.

"Rebekah." She smiled widely.

He did the same. "It's nice to meet you, Rebekah. I'm Matt." he extended his arm and she shook it, noticing how firm but gentle was his hand on top of hers.

"So, you wanna impress the lucky girlfriend?" she asked boldly with a hint of a crooked smile.

"Impress yes but not a girlfriend." Matt shook his head amused at her forwardness.

"Oh, I should have said boyfriend then?" Rebekah asked surprised, feeling a little disappointment kick in.

"No, no!" Matt laughed lightly at the way her brows knitted in confusion. "I'm strictly a girlfriend's type of guy." He smiled but this time a little more flirty, shoving his hands inside the pockets of his jeans.

"Good to know." Rebekah offered him the same smile, titling her head to the side. "So you're a new face; I haven't seen you around." She declared.

"Yeah, I just moved here. I was a student in Virginia University up until recently but now I graduated." Matt informed her briefly. "What about you?" he went on, rocking on his heels lightly something that Rebekah found extremely cute.

"I think I just showcased my area of expertise." The girl pointed behind him, where he had abandoned his soon to be purchased clothes. Looking over his shoulder, Matt let a breathing laugh.

"Fashion department; I think it suits you." he agreed with a nod.

"And I think that shirt is going to definitely suit you." She grinned widely and watched him chuckle, bowing his head in modesty. God, he was so handsome and cute; bingo!

"Well, thanks to your help I won't appear like an idiot with the wrong tie!" he joked and Rebekah let a melodic laugh. Soon enough their laughter turned into a full of promises silence as the blue of their eyes connected in a heated stare but their interaction caught short the minute Hayley called Rebekah's name.

"So…" Rebekah trailed off, pointing a thumb over her shoulder. "That's my cue to go."

Matt nodded. "I guess that's the right time to ask for your number, right?" he titled his head to the side and offered her an adorable grin.

Rebekah giggled, shaking her head. "Usually I would say that you have to earn it but I'm feeling a little generous today." She shrugged and searched inside her bag before taking out a pink lipstick. Moving in a flirty, feminine manner, she took his manly hand and slowly wrote her number on the back of his hand with the lipstick.

Looking straight at his surprised and full of excitement eyes, she smiled foxily and leaned a little closer to his ear. "That way you know my number and the color left on your lips after our first make-out." She pulled back and winked, satisfied to see him smiling intriguing by her, before throwing her blonde locks back and walking back to Hayley, making sure there was a little more sway on her hips as she went.

"What do we have over there?" the brunette eyed the blonde man with obvious interest.

"Down girl!" Rebekah scolded her with a naughty smile. "That eye candy is mine!"

"Well, Rebekah Sommers, you did a hell of a good job once again!" Hayley complimented her, sliding an arm around Rebekah's elbow.

"I know, darling." The blonde scoffed in a confident manner, letting a carefree laugh along with her best friend. As on cue, Rebekah's phone beeped informing her about a new message. Eyeing the device, her eyes narrowed in confusion reading "unknown number" at the receiver space. She tapped the open button on the screen only to feel her chest tighten at the words.

_Nice lipstick trick, Bekah! I wonder how the person you learned that from would feel about you trying to take their place…_

_-K_

Rebekah's eyes widened reading and rereading the small text. It couldn't be possible. No one knew, no one was there with them when…

"_I can't do it!"_

"_Oh, come on, Bekah!"_

"_I said, no, Katherine! I can't just go there and give Alexander my number! He'll think I'm a freak or something!" a 16 year old Rebekah tugged nervously the strings of her white sweater hoodie, stealing side glances of the muscular baseball captain but never daring to fully face him._

"_I never said to boldly hand him your number, silly." Katherine laughed amused, her always perfect raven curls swaying around her gorgeous face. "Go there, smile, flirt with him a little and then everything will happen eventually." She leaned a little closer, as if telling a secret and curled her full lips into her usual foxy smile. "Lead him on and then leave him waiting."_

"_You say it like it's the easiest think in the world." The blonde shook her head in exasperation. "I'm not you, boys never like me." She pushed self-consciously her hair behind her ears and readjusted the big black glasses on her nose that hid her ocean blue eyes._

"_Well, then change it." The other girl immediately replied. "Nothing is offered to you on a plate. You have to work for it." She became serious, intense. Rebekah didn't like that Katherine._

"_I… I can't do it." Rebekah shuttered the usual mantra one more time and the brunette huffed._

"_Fine." Katherine raised her hands. "At least watch and try to learn, kiddo." She winked and after straightening up her way too provocative for school black blouse, she sauntered across the school cafeteria like she owned the place -and to be honest, she did- and came to a halt in front of the very cute new guy._

_Rebekah watched from a far the way she talked to him, smiling charmingly and using her body language to attract him. And he was so bewitched, never losing his focus on her, listening to every word that came out of her lips like his life was depending from it. That was the beauty of Katherine; she could make everyone putty in her hands. From teachers to parents and boys, she had everyone hooked with just a move of her perfect silk hair. And Rebekah envied her so much for that._

_Not shortly after the shy girl watched as her friend pulled out of her skinny jeans' pocket her trademark red lipstick and taking the boy's hand, she slowly wrote something, probably her number, on it. Her inviting lips whispered to him and like that she turned around and left, leaving the poor boy in a mess of high school hormones behind her. Katherine had so much confidence, such a strong attitude that Rebekah felt so small in front of her. That was the moment Rebekah made the promise that someday she was going to feel as powerful as her._

Rebekah's eyes were wide in horror, stuck on the screen of her phone, as the memory slowly faded and reality welcomed her. "Katherine?" the word left her lips in a whisper, not quite believing herself.

"What?" Hayley asked, not catching what her friend just said.

The blonde composed herself in an instant, locking her phone and throwing it in her bag, like it was going to explode. "Nothing! Stupid commercial texts, that's all." she assured her with a fade smile. Hayley offered an agreeing huff back and the girls starting making their way back to their cars, with Rebekah no longer paying attention to her friend's cheerful blabbing.

* * *

"Here's your coffee." The smiley girl offered the paper cup to Caroline, who in exchange paid and told her to keep the change, much to the girl's delight. Caroline took a sip of her favorite beverage, humming as the scent filled her nostrils while exiting Mystic Falls Grill, the most famous coffee shop, restaurant, bar, whatever-the-occasion-was gather-around place in their town. She had barely made two steps when she froze like a deer caught in the headlights. There at the corner of the road a black 70's Ford Mustang was parked, the very same vehicle she was one hundred percent sure she wouldn't see rolling around in Mystic Falls ever again.

The driver effectively killed the engine and as if to confirm Caroline's thoughts, the door opened revealing the infamous Klaus Mikaelson. He hadn't changed a bit, she noticed, as his trademark combat boots were making heavy, secure steps towards her direction. Everyone knew to stay away from him. With his leather jacket and old school Judd Nelson attitude, he was the outcast of the school community, a pariah, the one to cause only trouble and nothing more. He was more of a loner type, never hanging out with anyone or belonging to any group, his main interest being booze and girls, older ones, experienced. At least that's what Caroline had heard about him.

Gulping nervously but maintaining her cold façade her eyes made contact with his captivating ones. Of course he remembered her; after all she and her friends were the ones responsible for him and his family moving away. His blue-greenish orbs –a strange color that always left the girls wanting a single look from him- turned cold as a stone upon seeing her, long lost their calmness, and Caroline caught herself sending him the same look too. Yes, they had done an awful thing but he wasn't a saint towards them too.

He passed her by, not slowing down his steps or making his stare more gentle, if possible making it even more hostile towards her before disappearing inside the small café she previously exited. But her discomfort didn't seem to end there. A rush of blood shot through her head and her stomach dropped when the passenger window rolled down, the person driving with him needing to take some fresh air.

The straight sandy hair was the first that Caroline saw and recognized; she hadn't changed a bit too. Camille Vanderwall, or Cami as everyone used to call her, sat there calmly waiting, without a hint of the superiority that a year ago oozed once she set foot in a room. With her porcelain skin, the gentle features of her face and the gift of two forest green doe eyes, she was considered to be one of girls that turned heads in high school. After the "accident" though, no one heard from her. A cold night of November, the sound of the ambulance woke up the town of Mystic Falls as Klaus' stepsister was rushed to the hospital after a severe car crash, responsible for serious and life-threatening injuries. The doctors managed to save her life but nothing could be done about her crashed larynx, the damage of which silenced her forever. A cold shiver run down Caroline's spine imagining how hard it would be for someone to try but always fail to even spoke a single word.

Her Blackberry vibrated on her pocket and Caroline quickly reached for the side of her blazer to retrieve it. She raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at the "unknown caller" at the center of the screen but pushed the open button anyway.

_She can't talk but my lips are pretty loose. You better watch your back._

_-K_

The blonde frowned. Disorientated, she raised her head and looked behind her waiting for somebody to storm out of the Grill and tell her that this was only a sick joke. She read again the message, her hands becoming sweaty, as her mind went rigid with possibilities. The only people that knew were the five of them, Klaus and Camille. _Did someone talk?, _she wondered. They couldn't! With a double check behind her back, she shoved her phone into her pocket, the logical part of her mind already creating scenarios to calm her hypervating, neurotic one. Deciding that getting away from these people was the best choice, she started walking quickly, not at all noticing the green doe eyes that were watching her all this time from the rearview mirror.

* * *

Elena put the last hairpin on her hair, effectively steading the small braid at the side of the head. Combing the rest of her straight long hair with her slim fingers, she hurriedly slipped into her grey peep toe pumps and grabbed her same colored clutch, observing her outfit on her vanity mirror for the last time. The blue color of her silk one shoulder dress contradicted delicately with her olive skin whereas its chiffon design made it fall deliciously over her well-built legs stopping just before her knees. Her outfit for the evening was complete with a pair of silver linear earrings and light makeup, Elena never being the one for big extravaganza.

The familiar sound of a horn echoed outside and Elena grabbed quickly her phone, before hurrying down the wooden stairs.

"Tyler's here. I'm off." She announced ready to fly out the door.

"Wait, wait!" her mom's voice reached her ears, before she appeared in front of her with a camera in her hands and her dad on toe. "I wanna take a picture."

"Mom!" Elena groaned. She never liked this kind of stuff.

"Oh, hush!" Miranda scolded her with a smile. "It's your last homecoming; you should be making memories. Now smile." She ordered and Elena boringly did so. After some snapshots, Miranda insisted that they should have some father-daughter pictures too and so Grayson was forced to pose with Elena too.

"Gosh, you too are so much alike!" Miranda joked, regarding their attitude towards photographs. "Oops, hold on a sec, I need to check on dinner." She announced before jogging to the kitchen, leaving the two of them alone.

"You look very beautiful, honey." Grayson smiled sweetly at his daughter, admiring the young woman she was becoming.

"Thanks." Elena murmured, pretending to search something inside her clutch.

"I love you, Elena, you know that, right?" He suddenly said, causing her to raise her eyes and face him.

She sighed. "Yeah, I know."

"And you know that I love your mom…" he went on, honesty coloring his voice.

"Well, you have a hell of way to showing it." She replied in a sarcastic tone that made him drop his head in defeat.

"I made a mistake, ok? And I will be sorry for it for the rest of my life." Her dad repeated for like a millionth time, the guilt haunting his eyes as he tried to gain the trust of his beloved daughter. "I hope that one day you'll be able to forgive me." He looked her in the eyes, searching for a sign that she hadn't give up on him yet.

"What are you sorry for dad?" Elena snapped. "For cheating mom, for lying to her face or for making me lie to her too?" she accused him in an angry whisper, not wanting her mom to be upset. Her dad closed his eyes, hurt by her honest words and tried to say something but she cut him off. "You keep saying that you're sorry but, let's face it, a sorry doesn't change what happened." She concluded fiercely and reached for the door handle before speaking again with her back turned to him. "I wish I could forgive you but… I just can't." she quickly flew out the door, not trusting her voice if she stayed a little longer. She was about to walk down the stairs and slip into Tyler's vintage Buick when her shoe stepped into a folded piece of paper.

Curiously, the brunette picked it up and unfolded it, a lump forming in her throat as she read the messy handwriting that didn't recognize.

_Poor Lena! Daddy Gilbert is not so innocent after all. Too bad that your mom doesn't have a clue about what's happening into her own house…_

_-K_

In a split second, her head was snapping from side to side in panic, searching for the source of that outrageous message. How did this happen? She hadn't told anyone about it and the only other that knew was_ her_. Her eyes dropped to the paper again as if she kept looking at it, it would confess who was behind all that. Elena felt her knees getting weak, the group moving from under them. A great deal of nausea suddenly appeared inside her stomach at the thought of somebody knowing about her family's indiscretions. It couldn't be, she kept repeating in her mind, as her hands started shaking.

"Are you coming?" Tyler's voice broke her mental breakdown. Their eyes met and he shook his head in question as she slowly started to gather her full of panic thoughts. She took some deep breathes and relaxed her body, rationalizing with herself and relying on sweet nothings assuring her that everything would be fine. Squeezing the piece of paper inside her fist with hatred making it a worthless ball, she held her head high and settled in the car beside Tyler.

"Is everything ok?" he asked concerned about his girlfriend.

Elena hesitated but finally replied in a slightly shaky voice. "Yeah, fine. Just bickering with my dad again." She lied offering him a weak smile.

Tyler nodded in a knowing manner. "Well, tonight is all about fun so stop worrying your pretty little head. I'll make sure you'll have a very good night." He promised her with a crooked grin, leaning forward and Elena felt herself relaxing a little when his lips found hers in a semi-heated kiss. When finally Tyler drove off the Gilbert residence Elena threw the offensive message from the window and leaned back at her seat, deciding that tonight she wouldn't think about any of that stuff. Too bad fate had other plans…

* * *

Bonnie entered the crowded school gym with the sound of A Night Like This echoing loudly inside the big room. Ironic, she thought, as she stood at the entrance for a while and observed the moving bodies in a sea of colorful dresses and suits, finding amusing that nothing could ever ruin the teenage mood for a good party. Smoothing the pleaded skirt of her black short sleeved mini dress with edgy lace bodice, she balanced gracefully on her same colored high heeled ankle booties decorated by golden buckles and an open toe. The dazzling necklace on her neck were falling like a waterfall of chains over the dress design, colored in gold and black too matching the bracelets on her wrist and creating another one of Bonnie's unique outfits.

Some boys from her physics class greeted her with a little more interest than usual and she politely smiled at them, brushing them off but not wanting to be rude. Walking to the small buffet and serving herself a cup of punch, the petite brunette scanned the room with her lightly smoky eyes, searching for some familiar faces.

At the spotlight were once again Rebekah and her posy, near the center of the room. The impressive blonde had picked a beige mini dress with golden sequin allover and mesh yoke that flared up until her knees for the night she would be finally awarded with the title of the homecoming queen. A pair of beige with golden details pumps was decorating her long legs and some big turquoise fish hooked earrings were spicing up the whole outfit. She was so beautiful, as always, tonight even glowing from happiness that her time had finally come.

Attached to her hip was once again Haley, dressed in a bloody red bodycon dress, showing off a rich amount of cleavage as long as her toned legs, clad in a pair of golden sandals that matched her also gold standing-out accessories. Unlike Rebekah that chose to gather her hair up in a tight French bun, the brunette had left them in heavy, big curls around her face. Both girls had their escorts on their sides, but conversation seemed to only been held strictly between the girls.

At the other side of the room, near the entrance, Elena and Tyler were surrounded by many guys of the team along with their girlfriends. All of them were talking and laughing loudly, clearly having a great time. Elena seemed a little off but Tyler was never leaving her drift out of the conversation for too long. The two of them had started dating approximately two years ago, athlete meets athlete kind of situation, and they seemed lovely, not that anyone could know if something was hiding under their happy façade.

The song changed into a pop ballad when Caroline Forbes walked down the small stairs that lead to the gym. The light lavender bandage dress was fitting her like a glove, flattering her little but alluring cleavage with its sweetheart neckline and making her legs look like going for miles with the help of her purple peep toe pumps. Same colored necklace and stud earrings were completing her outfit and she had opted for her hair up in an elegant French bun with a single curl falling to the right side of her face. She wandered around for a little bit, chatting with some of her classmates from the decathlon team and some chaperons; she even engaged herself in a civilized conversation with her sister but not for long of course. Once Caroline felt that the conversation was going to end badly, she excused herself and immediately drowned her annoyance in punch. Bonnie was still standing by the buffet but a polite smile was the only interaction between the two girls.

And so the hours went by and the teenagers kept dancing without a care in the world. Soon enough the live band that was the source of entertainment for the night made a break and Lexi Forbes went up on stage. The abstract sequins of her black sleeveless short dress were twinkling under the big spotlight and she announced that the time has finally come; the new king and queen were going to be announced. Rebekah straightened the skirt of her dress and patted the side of her hair to tame them, preparing herself for the big moment.

"Please welcome your new homecoming king and queen, Alexander Coin and Rebekah Sommers!" Rebekah squalled happily as Lexi spoke enthusiastically and the crowd erupted in loud cheering and applause. Bonnie, Caroline and Elena, all three of them had a pleased smile as they applauded, watching Rebekah glowing from utter happiness. They might not be as close anymore but all three hadn't forgotten that that's what she ever wanted since they were kids. Now that she got it, Rebekah felt that reality was even better than her dream.

Alexander was the one to be crowned first, earning a round of barking cheering of the baseball team and moved to the side so Lexi could place the delicate crown on Rebekah's head too. The girl grinned from ear to ear when the former homecoming queen congratulated her and finally crowned her, causing her to close her eyes for a brief second to savor the moment. However, when she opened them the dream slowly started to fade.

A loud piercing scream sharply cut through the night, causing the whole room to turn into silence. The terrifying sound kept going and going as the students started moving towards the source in a sea of loud worried chattering and teachers' instructions to stay calm. Rebekah felt her stomach dropping and her eyes burn with unshed tears, watching as the panicked crowd was franticly rushing outside from every possible exit, receiving strong pushes from the impatient ones. She hadn't dream that moment like that. No, no, she couldn't believe it that somebody was ruining the best night of her life.

She didn't even understand how she got outside at the wide grass area of the school's back campus. The loud screaming was still there, scratching her ears and Rebekah felt the urge to cover them, to block the offensive sound. Her blue eyes wandered through the students and she finally spotted the source of all that noise, a small- framed girl with black raven hair in a delicate updo; she was a junior, she thought she had seen her once or twice in the corridor but she never cared enough to learn her name. She was now crying hysterically as some teachers were trying to block the shocking sight she was looking at and Rebekah felt a lump in her throat for some odd reason.

Everything happened in a blur after that. Police cars floated the area with their sirens joining the girl's still loud sobs in a duet and the officers emerged from them, ordering the students to back off and let them do their job. Pushing some people off her way, Bonnie appeared on Rebekah's side, playing anxiously with her black clutch on her hands.

"What's going on?" she asked in a voice full of worry, both girls' eyes locked in the scene unfolding in front of them. A young female cop was starting to spread that distinguishing yellow "crime scene" tape right when the sound of an ambulance joined the chaos.

"They said they found something." Caroline answered the question, coming to stand next to Rebekah too and staring blankly ahead of them.

From across the campus, Elena slid from Tyler's strong hold on her waist and anxiously kept fingering the yellow tape just as the paramedics started carrying a narrow stretcher with a body covered with a white sheet. The wind blew suddenly through the woods that were inches away, maliciously twirling some autumn leaves on the ground and causing chills to the four girls. The white sheet smoothly danced over the victim's face, revealing a very cold and unmoving Katherine Piece.

A mutual gasp left the rosy lips of her four best friends but was submerged by the loud murmuring caused by the revelation. It was a truly shocking sight. Katherine was never so silent or still or _less beautiful_ for that matter. She was the one pulling the strings, mesmerizing people with just a look of her cat's eyes, waking up the neighborhood with the clicking of her heels, dancing, plotting, laughing, provoking, _living_. But all someone could see now was dirt on her delicate skin and signs of decomposition due to time. She was still beautiful of course; but in a haunted and terribly cold way, frozen at the age of sixteen forever.

Bonnie felt her nails cutting the skin of her forearms as they were crossed over her chest. Her heart was pistoling like a machine gun unable to comprehend the scene that was unfolding in front of them. She felt like she was lost inside the fantasy world of a book and as soon as she finished the last chapter all that would be over; but tonight that wasn't the case. With a side glance the petite brunette saw Rebekah hugging herself, desperately trying to stop the tragic shivering and Caroline looking so lost and devastated, staring blankly as the paramedics re-covered the body and railed it inside the ambulance. Bonnie's hazel eyes connected with Elena's chocolate ones and her look was so heavy from sorrow and grief that Bonnie couldn't handle it. The beeping of her phone caused her to avoid her gaze and search for it, immediately opening the new message without looking at the ID.

_Why so shocked, Bon-Bon? You're the one that left her alone that night._

_-K_

The girl felt like somebody was throwing a bucket of cold water over her. Her face became paler and her heart sunk at the memory that the text brought to surface. Yes, she was the one that left Katherine alone that night exactly a year ago but who could possibly know? She checked the ID. Unknown number. The pistoling of her heart didn't slow down. Was it her fault that Katherine wasn't tonight with them? She felt sick, weak, _guilty_.

A police officer instructed once again the people to step back. Some guys passed by and one of them drunkenly tripped, shoving Rebekah to the side but not enough to make her fall. A soft thud echoed as the crown from her head dropped to the ground, right inside the small hole Katherine was found in, shining through the freshly dug clay, playing a sick joke on the three friends that stared at it in horror...

* * *

**Well, as you correctly assumed this story is based slightly on Pretty Little Liars. The general plot and characterisation are there but things will take a different route and there will be added a lot of fresh and new stuff. As you can see from the very first chapter our four basic characters are a mix and match from the ones of the show so things won't be exactly like. And sorry for the very long chapter by I needed to settle the characters, the facts and all that. Hope you're not bored already!**

**So are we intrigued? Bored? Confused? Leave a review and let me know if you'd like me to continue with it! I love so much hearing your opinions!**

**Until next time! Thank you for reading, my lovelies!**

**Kisses -K ;)**


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